The city of Duluth, Minnesota, will spend $23.3 million to rehabilitate the Aerial Life Bridge after securing the final piece of funding from the US Department of Transportation (USDOT). Construction is expected to begin later this year between October and December.
Major components of the rehabilitation project will include replacing several deteriorated sections of the lift span roadway deck grating. The city will also replace the bridge sidewalks and support steel on both sides of the bridge.
The project vision calls for making various repairs to the structural steel of the overhead truss, lift span truss and roadway support members to restore corrosion damage. In addition, the city will repair the spalled and delaminated concrete on the bridge end abutments and tower column support pedestals.
Plans include repainting the lift span truss, including all steel members below the roadway deck grating and extending to roughly six feet above the roadway deck. This will cover portions of the truss within the de-icing salt spray zone. Finally, the city will repaint the bridge’s overhead steel truss connecting the north and south towers.
The Aerial Lift Bridge is an iconic structure for the port city, capable of being raised like an elevator up to 135 feet in approximately a minute. The rehabilitation efforts will ensure that the bridge continues to be fully and reliably functional after nearly a century of operation. The project will be completed over a four-year period.
Photo by Brett Sayles from Pexels
For more of the latest from the expansive government marketplace, check Government Market News daily for new stories, insights and profiles from public sector professionals. Check out our national contracting newsletter here.
